# How credits work

Credits are one pool that pays for every AI action. Learn when they reset, what rolls over, which credits are spent first, and what happens when you reach zero.

*Figure: Credits come in from your plan each month and from packs you buy, and go out when a generation runs.*

## One pool for every tool

Every AI tool in UOVA spends from the same credit ledger: the site generator, editor AI chat, Studio image, video and audio generation, the Lock-in agent, upscaling, background removal and image edits. There is no separate budget per tool.

Your balance is what remains of this month's plan allowance plus any credits you bought. Each plan's monthly allowance is listed in [How pricing works](https://www.uova.com/help/billing/how-pricing-works).

## Monthly credits reset on the 1st (UTC)

Included monthly credits reset at the start of each calendar month in UTC, not on your billing date. Unused monthly credits do not roll over to the next month.

> **UTC month:** The reset follows the UTC calendar, so the local time it happens depends on your time zone. Your billing date does not move it.

If you upgrade in the middle of a month, the allowance changes to the new plan's number, but what you have already used this month still counts against it. The new allowance is not added on top.

## Credits you buy never expire

Credit packs go into a separate wallet on your account. Bought credits do not expire and are spent only after the month's plan allowance is used up. See [Buy more credits](https://www.uova.com/help/billing/credit-packs).

|  | Plan credits | Bought credits |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Where they come from | Your plan, every month | A one-time pack purchase |
| When they reset | Start of each UTC month | They do not reset |
| Roll over | No | They stay in your wallet |
| Spent | First | After the monthly allowance is used |

## What happens when credits run out

When your balance cannot cover an action, the action does not run and nothing is charged. What you see depends on where you are.

| Where | What you see |
| --- | --- |
| Studio Create pages, free plan, balance short before you run | A window titled "You've used your free credits" with the button **View Plans & Upgrade**, which opens the Studio billing page. |
| Studio Create pages, paid plan, balance short before you run | The line "This needs <N> credits and you have <M>." above the **Generate** button. |
| Studio Create pages, the server says your credits are used up | The same window, titled "You've used this month's credits" on a paid plan, with a note that your credits renew at the start of next month. The result card reads **Not enough credits**. |
| Upscale, Remove Background, Edit Image | "Not enough credits. Need <N> but have <M>." |
| Lock-in agent | "Not enough credits to continue. Nothing was charged. Top up, then approve again." |

You can then buy a pack, change plan, or wait for the monthly reset.

On the Free plan the whole allowance is 250 credits, which is the price of one full website generation. After that, generation on the Free plan resumes at the next monthly reset unless you have bought credits.

## Failed generations are refunded

If a generation fails, the credits are refunded automatically. On a Studio Create page the failed card shows a short reason, then **Refunded** with the amount, or **No credits used**. The Studio runs exactly the model and prompt you chose: if that model fails, no other model is tried in its place.

A refund goes back to your bought-credit wallet first, up to the amount your wallet paid toward that month's charges. Anything left over restores your monthly allowance. If you spent only monthly credits, the whole refund restores the monthly allowance.

- A video that has not finished in 30 minutes is marked failed and refunded once, with the message "This video did not finish within 30 minutes". Until then the card shows "Still rendering" and the video appears in your Library when it finishes.
- If the connection drops while a run is in flight, the card reads "Connection lost" and "Check your Library and credit balance." UOVA cannot tell from your browser whether the charge went through, so check the Library before you run again.
- If the automatic refund itself fails, the message tells you to contact support. See [Help and support](https://www.uova.com/help/getting-started/help-and-support).

## Check your balance and history

The Billing page in your account settings shows your credit usage and your credit history, and lists your invoices. In the Studio the balance is the credits chip in the top bar of the tool pages, which opens the Studio billing page, and on the chat page it is the pill next to **Buy credits** and the meter in the sidebar. The avatar menu shows your plan, your credits and **Resets in <time>**.

## Limits

- Credits have no cash value, cannot be transferred, and are non-refundable.
- If a plan charge is fully refunded or a payment dispute is lost, the account drops to Free and credits are frozen.

## Common questions

**Do my credits renew on my billing date?**

No. Monthly credits reset at the start of each UTC calendar month. Your billing date only decides when you are charged.

**I upgraded mid-month. Did I get a whole new allowance?**

No. The limit becomes the new plan's number and your usage so far this month still counts against it.

**Can I move credits to someone else?**

No. Credits are non-transferable and have no cash value.

Source: https://www.uova.com/help/billing/credits